The conservative former leader of the Soviet Communist Party in Leningrad, expelled two months ago for using his political influence to buy a Mercedes-Benz at a huge discount, has been readmitted to the party, the official Soviet news agency Tass reported Wednesday. Yuri F. Solovyov, who had been booted out for "displaying immodesty and violating the normals of party ethics," agreed to return the car, virtually new but bought for the price of a beaten-up, second-hand Soviet compact, Tass said.

The conservative former leader of the Soviet Communist Party in Leningrad, expelled two months ago for using his political influence to buy a Mercedes-Benz at a huge discount, has been readmitted to the party, the official Soviet news agency Tass reported Wednesday. Yuri F. Solovyov, who had been booted out for "displaying immodesty and violating the normals of party ethics," agreed to return the car, virtually new but bought for the price of a beaten-up, second-hand Soviet compact, Tass said.

President Mikhail S. Gorbachev, demonstrating the Communist Party's new commitment to respect the will of the people, Wednesday replaced the Leningrad party boss who lost in spring elections and sharply criticized the city's party organization for sitting idly by while his policies of reform are stirring emotions on the street. Gorbachev, who traveled to the Soviet Union's second-largest city to preside personally over the change in party officials, announced that Yuri F.

President Mikhail S. Gorbachev, demonstrating the Communist Party's new commitment to respect the will of the people, Wednesday replaced the Leningrad party boss who lost in spring elections and sharply criticized the city's party organization for sitting idly by while his policies of reform are stirring emotions on the street. Gorbachev, who traveled to the Soviet Union's second-largest city to preside personally over the change in party officials, announced that Yuri F.

A former Politburo member and political enemy of President Mikhail S. Gorbachev was expelled from the Communist Party for using his influence to buy a Mercedes, Tass reported today. The harsh action against die-hard conservative Yuri F. Solovyov came three days before a critical meeting of the party Central Committee. The expulsion was another humiliation for Solovyov, the former Leningrad party chief who was defeated during the spring in the vote for Parliament despite having no opposition.

Faced with worsening ethnic and labor unrest, President Mikhail S. Gorbachev appeared Friday to be turning to new and more radical tactics in his struggle to reform the Soviet system. In a speech to regional Communist Party leaders published in Friday's issue of Pravda, Gorbachev made his strongest attack yet on the party conservatives he accuses of frustrating his policy of perestroika , or restructuring.

Faced with worsening ethnic and labor unrest, President Mikhail S. Gorbachev appeared Friday to be turning to new and more radical tactics in his struggle to reform the Soviet system. In a speech to regional Communist Party leaders published in Friday's issue of Pravda, Gorbachev made his strongest attack yet on the party conservatives he accuses of frustrating his policy of perestroika , or restructuring.

The Soviet Communist Party realigned its top policy-making body Tuesday, retiring nearly a quarter of the members of its Central Committee and bringing in younger supporters of President Mikhail S. Gorbachev and his reform program. Dozens of older officials associated with the late President Leonid I. Brezhnev--figures such as former Foreign Minister Andrei A. Gromyko--and his now discredited policies were effectively purged in the move. The changes are meant to free Gorbachev from the restraints imposed by conservative criticism in the committee and to allow him to act more decisively.